NEW DELHI: Despite having the cleanest air quality on Diwali in the last eight years, the city returned to its gas chamber status, thanks to the uncontrolled bursting of firecrackers.
The Supreme Court-mandated blanket ban on firecrackers was turned upside down as the Delhi government’s campaign ‘Diye Jalao Patakhe Nahin’ lost its meaning in decibel duress. A day after Diwali, Delhi topped the list of most polluted cities in the world, according to IQAir, a Swiss group that measures air quality levels of 100 major cities globally.
The national capital was engulfed in a thick layer of smog on Diwali night and the toxic haze continued to hang heavy on Monday with some areas reaching 999 on the AQI meter. The overall AQI of the city was put at 358, as per the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) report.
The AQI was 218 on the day of Diwali, mainly due to the rain and a favourable wind speed that ranged between 4-16 kmph, which helped in the dispersion of pollutants. However, the bursting of firecrackers till late Sunday night led to a spike in pollution levels amid a low temperature. The pollution levels neared the “severe” category (AQI between 400 and 450) in some areas, including Ayanagar (382), Central Road Research Institute (393), and Pusa (391).
The CPCB data showed the AQI was recorded at 312 in Delhi on Diwali last year, 382 in 2021, 414 in 2020, 337 in 2019, 281 in 2018, 319 in 2017 and 431 in 2016. Any immediate respite is unlikely as the air quality is expected to turn severe from Tuesday.
Centre’s Air Quality Early Warning System has forecast that the air quality may deteriorate further and remain in the “very poor” to “severe” category from November 14-16. Firecracker bursting pushed the PM2.5 concentration at many places, including Okhla and Jahangirpuri, in the national capital over 1,000 micrograms per cubic meter early Monday.